WIP Discussion (Part 1!)

[icekatze]

hi hi

Sounds like a job offer, or at least an unexpected compliment.

(Also: I wasn't really referring to the Loroi's telepathy. What I meant was that humans have the opportunity to look at the situation without pre-existing biases, which is something the Loroi seem to have a cultural difficulty doing.)

[Absalom]

Well, the weapons may be antiquated, the armor may be weak, the shields may be non-existent, but it looks like the America-class can receive Loroi drives with little to no trouble! Mostly because it looks like the ones it has were added as an after-thought. If the Loroi eventually need a few planetary bombardment platforms, it shouldn't be too hard.

Also, I like the detail.

[NOMAD]

WOW

that heavy cruises look VERY good, pls tell me were getting a scouts shoot next

man Arioch, I can see why you updated the heavy cruiser file in the insider guide, although I do see a hint of the Taidan heavy cruiser in the terra one. coincidence ?

[Wintermute]

Sexy like a WWII battleship.

Also, I don't know if it's intentional, but I'm loving the Taiidani-esque vibes I'm getting.

[TrashMan]

Love it.

Too bad the old design is gone. I loved the huge-ass gun on it.

[icekatze]

hi hi

Its still got a huge spinal railgun in the new artwork though... maybe its a unique addition?

All in all, very sweet design. if I'm reading this right, those two openings on the side are the torpedo launchers, the upward facing grate is the anti-missile launcher, the boxy turrets are the heavy lasers and the pointy turrets are the heavy mass drivers. Which makes me think that the ship is largely designed around keeping its dorsal side facing the enemy while in combat.

[Arioch]

man Arioch, I can see why you updated the heavy cruiser file in the insider guide, although I do see a hint of the Taidan heavy cruiser in the terra one. coincidence ?

It's not deliberate, but there are definitely similarities. The Terran CA is basically a blockier, sized-up version of the Scout, and it turns out that looks a lot like the Taiidan CA. And, of course, there is often plenty of Homeworld sensibility to many of my ship designs. The Taiidan CA in particular is a very sensible design, I think... a simple wedge body and "wings" that allow for plenty of turret locations.

Its still got a huge spinal railgun in the new artwork though... maybe its a unique addition?

Yes, it still has the huge particle beam cannon underneath, it just looks different. It's a modular upgrade (called the "Mjolnir"); at the time of this flashback, ECS-062 America is the only ship that has it.

(And no, the name isn't a reference to our esteemed fellow forumgoer of the same name; Mjolnir is Thor's hammer.)

if I'm reading this right, those two openings on the side are the torpedo launchers, the upward facing grate is the anti-missile launcher, the boxy turrets are the heavy lasers and the pointy turrets are the heavy mass drivers.

The torpedo tubes are the rectangular doors in the main "hump." The two nozzles at the front of the strakes are retro engines. I just noticed that the grille thing obstructs the tube doors, so whatever it is must be retractable.

Someone asked a while back about the Colonial Fleet color scheme, and I promised to do a real-color version of this panel, so here's a look:

[NOMAD]

man Arioch, I can see why you updated the heavy cruiser file in the insider guide, although I do see a hint of the Taidan heavy cruiser in the terra one. coincidence ?

It's not deliberate, but there are definitely similarities. The Terran CA is basically a blockier, sized-up version of the Scout, and it turns out that looks a lot like the Taiidan CA. And, of course, there is often plenty of Homeworld sensibility to many of my ship designs. The Taiidan CA in particular is a very sensible design, I think... a simple wedge body and "wings" that allow for plenty of turret locations.

Oh this coming fro the mighty Arioch, webmaster of homeworld ship yards . . . your too modest. The America looks very nice, can' wait to see it in comic.

Its still got a huge spinal railgun in the new artwork though... maybe its a unique addition?

Yes, it still has the huge particle beam cannon underneath, it just looks different. It's a modular upgrade (called the "Mjolnir"); at the time of this flashback, ECS-062 America is the only ship that has it.

(And no, the name isn't a reference to our esteemed fellow forumgoer of the same name; Mjolnir is Thor's hammer.)

well why not, on one hand: a mighty, powerfully first or second generation particle cannon, on the other: a great and mighty forum poster with much technical wisdom and knowledge in large format forum post, I think it's fitting in a good way. both aswome and powerful, in thier own respects.

[Count Casimir]

Mmm spaceships. I love 'em.

EDIT: Does that gun count as spinal? Wouldn't you say it's ventral?

[icekatze]

hi hi

I dig the color scheme, its largely utilitarian with just a little flair of color.

My bad on mis-remembering the big gun. I don't know why I was thinking it was a rail gun instead of a particle beam. I wonder how it stacks up against the particle beams the Loroi or the Umiak field, the level of sophistication probably would seem quaint to them.

In this context, spinal is a term for a weapon that fires down the long axis of the ship and cannot rotate, so I guess if they can rotate the big gun somehow, it wouldn't classify as a spinal weapon.

Do the torpedo launchers shoot the torpedos out of the launcher at high speed? They could launch the weapons at an angle away from the ship, something they might consider doing even if there isn't an object in their way. If a warship is maneuvering defensively, you'd probably want to give them at least a little bit of a kick out the door so that the warship doesn't evasively maneuver right into them a second after they're launched.

[Grayhome]

My immediate thoughts when I saw the ship were: "I am not here to look pretty, I am not here to impress anyone. I am here to do one thing and one thing only. I am here to kill everyone."

It has a functional, no nonsense attitude that I am sure the Loroi and Umiak will underestimate. "How can their ships be so deadly!? They look like flying rocks!."

[Random Person]

The Torpedoes would probably be shot out at an angle and then reoriented on target so that when they light off their engines the launching ship doesn't get damaged by the exhaust.

There, now you have an explanation for the obstruction.

[TrashMan]

Its still got a huge spinal railgun in the new artwork though... maybe its a unique addition?

Yes, it still has the huge particle beam cannon underneath, it just looks different. It's a modular upgrade (called the "Mjolnir"); at the time of this flashback, ECS-062 America is the only ship that has it.

Humans have particle a particle beam cannon?

[fredgiblet]

Its still got a huge spinal railgun in the new artwork though... maybe its a unique addition?

Yes, it still has the huge particle beam cannon underneath, it just looks different. It's a modular upgrade (called the "Mjolnir"); at the time of this flashback, ECS-062 America is the only ship that has it.

Humans have particle a particle beam cannon?

See:

First and foremost would be to put a rush on those warships which are under construction and not yet completed, and reactivation of some building projects that had been previously cancelled but not yet scrapped. Second would be short-term upgrades that can be applied to their existing fleet, such as the modular heavy beam cannon upgrade for the America-class cruisers. Third, there will be a lot of planning for new warships, but it is unlikely that they will start construction on anything new until they have established contact and know more about what will be required of them, and what assistance (if any) they can expect.

[Riess]

That may be an odd thing to focus on, but something about the greebles in front of the ship strongly reminds me of something else.
But what.

[icekatze]

hi hi

I was just thinking earlier today about the greebles on the ship. One of my first thoughts when I was looking at the design was "where do they reload supplies?" but it looks like there are similar panels near different components. Near the Main engines and the retro thrusters, there are square panels with two reinforcing lines towards the center. Perhaps those are open up for resupply, or maybe they're covering fuel tanks? I can pick out the RCS nozzles, and what look like airlocks.

The fact that its not totally covered in random greebles kind of reminds me of the clean surfaces you'd see on the old movie version of the Enterprise. Though there are some similar markings to a few of the old battletech dropships, but this is a much cleaner design than those old things. Though I suppose there are lots of animes where space ships have clean surfaces, like Legend of Galactic Heroes or Crest of the Stars, perhaps to save on animation costs... but still.

[Tamren]

I never understood the point of exposed superstructure. If you have a thousand doodads sticking out, presumably they all do something. So why not put a thin sheet of armour over them so you don't have to fix a gajillion micrometeorite hits.

[Trantor]

That may be an odd thing to focus on, but something about the greebles in front of the ship strongly reminds me of something else.
But what.

scnr.

[icekatze]

hi hi

Tamren: Maybe they put all those exposed components out there because fixing them gives the crew something to do during the mind numbingly long interstellar voyages?

I dunno... Battlestar Galactica has an awful lot of bracing by comparison.

[Tamren]

Did it always look like that? I'm pretty sure I've seen pictures of Galactica with full hull plating.